Biden condemns unrest following Gaza protests after police storm campuses: ‘Violent protest is not protected’

President Biden on Thursday condemned the unrest and violence that has disrupted college campuses over the last week while stressing the importance of Americans’ right to protest peacefully in support of the Palestinian people’s treatment during Israel’s ongoing war against Hamas in Gaza.

Mr Biden, speaking from the East Room of the White House, said peaceful protest is “in the best tradition of how Americans respond to consequential issues” because the US is “not an authoritarian nation where we silence people or squash dissent”.

He said the images of police clashing with protesters put the “fundamental American principles” of free speech and the rule of law “to the test” as he pointed out the importance of maintaining the latter to allow the former.

“Peaceful protest is in the best tradition of how Americans respond to consequential issues, but neither are we a lawless country. We're a civil society, and order must prevail,” he said.

Mr Biden also condemned actors who are using the campus unrest and protests to “score political points” and called the protests “a moment for clarity”.

“Let me be clear ... violent protest is not protected, peaceful protest is,” he said.

“Destroying property is not a peaceful protest — i's against the law. Vandalism, trespassing, breaking windows, shutting down campuses, forcing the cancellation of classes and graduations. None of this is a peaceful protest, threatening people, intimidating people, instilling fear in people is not peaceful protest. It's against the law”.

The president also stressed that while dissent remains “essential to democracy,” it “must never lead to disorder or denying the rights of others”.

“It's basically a matter of fairness. It's a matter of what's right. There's the right to protest, but not the right to cause chaos. People have the right to get an education, the right to get a degree, the right to walk across the campus safely without fear of being attacked,” he said.

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